News Release Media Contact: Daniel Durazo, 804.673.7175
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Jamie Foley, AllianzAssistPR@MBooth.com
Tony Scida, tscida@hodgespart.com
Olympic Travel Leads to Surge in Travel Insurance Sales
Americans embrace travel insurance as a hedge against Olympic hassles
RICHMOND, Va., May 31, 2012 — The 2012 Summer Olympics have provided a welcome boost for airlines, hotels and other travel suppliers that will benefit from an expected jump of more than 30 percent in the number of global travelers going to London compared to the same period in 2011. Now it appears that travel insurance providers are among those experiencing a strong uptick in sales. Richmond, VA-based Allianz Global Assistance USA, the country’s leading provider of travel insurance and travel assistance, says that sales of travel insurance to Americans headed to London between late July and early September are up by 36 percent compared to the previous summer. The company also found that Allianz Travel Insurance customers will stay in London longer than usual and one in five are using frequent flyer miles to get there.
“Summer travel to Europe is always strong, but the 2012 London Olympics is creating a perfect storm of potential headaches for travelers,” said Robert Pearson, Director of Market Intelligence at Allianz Global Assistance USA. “Unexpected illness or injury, significant airline delays and lost or delayed baggage are some of the concerns that consumers have when traveling and they are using travel insurance as a strategy to mitigate those risks.”
The 36 percent uptick in sales of Allianz Travel Insurance exactly matches an expected 36 percent increase in Americans headed to London during the Olympics compared to those going to London last summer, according to a study by Amadeus and Forward Keys, a travel data intelligence firm (http://new.amadeusblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/ForwardKeys-Olympic-whitepaper.pdf). That surge is expected to lead to increased pressure on travel infrastructure which may translate to longer delays and more lost or misdirected baggage. In addition to coverage for travel-related losses, Allianz Global Assistance provides travelers with 24/7 emergency travel assistance, which can help Americans navigate any medical or travel related situation they may encounter while in London.
The company also found that their customers’ trips to London during the Olympics will last about 26 days, which is 22 percent longer than the average visit to London last summer. Longer stays increase the chance that a traveler may become ill, injured or experience some other event which may require them to file a travel insurance claim or seek emergency travel assistance.
Allianz Travel Insurance customers are also using frequent flyer miles to purchase their tickets to London in greater numbers than usual. The percentage of travelers using frequent flyer miles to travel to London during the Olympics is 20 percent, compared to 14 percent who used their miles last summer. Many airlines may charge up to $150 per ticket to redeposit frequent flyer miles when a customer changes their plans. Allianz Travel Insurance offers products which will cover those redeposit fees when a customer cancels their trip for a reason covered by their policy.
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Allianz Global Assistance USA
Allianz Global Assistance USA is a leading consumer specialty insurance and assistance company with operation centers in 29 countries. In the United States, Allianz Global Assistance USA (AGA Service Company) insures 13 million customers and is best known for its Allianz Travel Insurance plans.
In addition to travel insurance, Allianz Global Assistance USA offers event ticket protection and unique assistance services such as international medical assistance and concierge services. The company also serves as an outsource provider for in-bound call center services and claims administration for health insurers, property and casualty insurers, and credit card companies.
For more information about Allianz Global Assistance USA, please visit allianzassistance.com. To learn more about Allianz Travel Insurance plans, please visit allianztravelinsurance.com or Like us on Facebook at Facebook.com/AllianzTravelInsuranceUS.
Allianz Global Assistance
How can we help?
International leader in Assistance, Travel Insurance and health, life & home care services, today Allianz Global Assistance counts more than 10,920 employees who speak 40 different languages and work throughout the world with a network of 400,000 service providers and 180 correspondents. 250 million people, or 4% of the world’s total population, benefit from its services, which the Group provides on all five continents.
Allianz
Allianz is the 20th largest company in the world (Forbes Global 2000, 2011) and 67th most valuable global brand (Interbrand, 2011). Allianz has 151,000 employees worldwide and 76 million customers in more than 70 countries. In 2010, Allianz had over 106.5 billion euros in revenue and over one trillion euros under management. In the US, Allianz brands include:
• Allianz Life
• Allianz Global Investors
• PIMCO
• Fireman’s Fund
• Euler Hermes
• And now, Allianz Global Assistance
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Replies
My family and I will not be attending the Olympics. Instead, we will be watching parts of it on TV. However, I can see why people who do attend are buying travel insurance. You have to be a real risk-taker to plan such a long and expensive vacation without any safety net. I also view attending the summer Olympics as a possibly dangerous trip because of the crowds and security concerns, and that should give attendees even more reasons to buy travel insurance and to carry copies of their passports and other documents.